Code Geass: Lelouch of the Cipher
by Hejin57
Summary: A fate worse than death. Lelouch Lamperouge knows such a fate, having engineered it himself. Nevertheless, even the plan of his own demise will turn against him, forcing him back into his old identity when the peace he left behind becomes at stake...
1. Turn 01: The Blank Prince

**Hello, readers of all kinds!**

**My name is Hejin57. I've been writing fanfiction for over a year now, with my best fics being a series of Suzumiya Haruhi stories that are still going strong! I had recently finished Code Geass in it's entirety, and I just had an urge to write something relating to it. So, I thought of a story in my head, taking place after the end of R2, and here it is!**

**But before you read this, I would just like to warn you of some things. One, there are a lot of spoilers in this upcoming story, so I do not suggest you read it if you haven't finished the series yet. Trust me when I say it's well worth the watch. Two, I will point out now that, yes, this revolves around Lelouch, so if you're a fan of him staying dead, then you probably won't like reading this. On a final note, I just want to point out that writing this story is going to be a big challenge for me, considering I'm not completely used to the universe yet, so any and all reviews, whether they're criticism or praise, are greatly appreciated. Also, I warn you that I will have at least one OC in this story, although they will never actually take precedence over the main characters, nor will I be pairing them up with any of them either.**

**And that's about all I have to say. This story will be chock full of drama, suspense, action and of course, romance. I won't be revealing much on that, as you should read yourself and find out. So, I hope you enjoy this story of mine. I certainly loved the series, so I'm going to try my best to capture it's essence in this piece of fan-fiction.**

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_What does life truly mean to human beings?_

_That remains to be a mystery of this world, like so many things. There are a multitude of answers to this question, but many of them do not suffice. Life is something that many humans take for granted. As a whole, the human race has still yet to realize the kind of impact one life can have on so many others. Some lives can even have an impact on the entire world._

_Lelouch Lamperouge was once such example. At one time, he was but one human, with a great desire to bring down that which wronged him, that being the former superpower known as the Holy Empire of Britannia. He was given the gift of Geass, the power of kings, in which he could obtain absolute obedience over any individual. With this ability, Lelouch engineered the fall of Britannia, but in doing so, lost much that was dear to him. At the end of his journey, he planned his own demise, leaving the world united against him, and on a road to mutual peace._

_But what was the price of his sacrifice? What was his true punishment? It was not simply death. Death would be an easy escape. No, Lelouch suffered a fate far worse than death. Unlike many humans, he did not intend to simply throw his life away as punishment for his sins. No, he had engineered his own suffering; one which he planned to undergo for the rest of his eternal existence…_

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_Hejin57 presents...._

~~~~**Code Geass: Lelouch of the Cipher**~~~~

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Turn 01: The Blank Prince

Peaceful skies were something that had been a rarity in Japan. When Britannia had first invaded, the skies had been filled with roves of warships brandishing the Britannian flag. Back then, there was little to look forward to beyond a continued life at the hands of the Empire. Back then, the Japanese people were nothing but inferior Elevens.

Now, there was nothing but clouds and the sun populating the sky over Japan. The taint of war had passed, and these days, the world moved towards a peace that had once thought to be impossible. Lelouch vi Britannia, the former tyrannical ruler of the world, had been slain by the masked hero Zero, and this freed the world from Lelouch's iron grip.

Underneath this vast blue sky, far into the Japanese countryside and some miles from any bustling city or town, a young man lay in a the midst of a wheat field, staring up above through his violet eyes. His black hair waved in a noticeable breeze, although a majority of it was covered underneath a tan hat that blocked out most of the sun's rays. Fall had come, and with it, there was much work to do in preparation for the approaching winter months.

Lelouch sighed to himself, but couldn't help but smile. He had the chance to relax right now, but it wouldn't be long until C.C found him and started complaining about how lazy he was being. But for now, life had remained relatively carefree.

When he could, Lelouch enjoyed being out here in the serene calm of this large wheat field, because it gave him time to think, and time to assess his life. For as long as he could remember, C.C had been his childhood friend, and he had spent the majority of his days living off this land with her by his side. She was someone indispensable to him, always by his side, and always brightening up his days.

But although his life had been so free of strife, Lelouch had always had strange, but prevalent feelings of doubt. There were times when he felt insignificant. Some things about him were a mystery even to himself. He could not recall his last name, his previous memories of a life without C.C, and so many other things that he believed to be important to him. He only knew of this life, and though he usually tried to not think about it, he had wished multiple times for something more.

Lelouch closed his eyes, not wanting to think too much, and wondered how much sleep he could get before C.C found him.

"Am I waking you? I hope you didn't think you could just wander away that easily." A voice said from above. Lelouch could have compared its likeness to an angel if he didn't know better.

Lelouch smiled to himself, knowing full well that he had been found out much faster than last time. He opened his eyes, only to see C.C looking down at him, her brilliant green hair color accentuated by the sunlight.

"Ah, sorry. I meant to go check on all our wheat, and I guess I-"

"You guess you got distracted? I've heard it before, Lelouch. I hope you realize that our other crops aren't going to water themselves." C.C said with a playful tone in her voice. Lelouch already guessed what was going to happen next, and he couldn't help but be slightly disappointed at not being able to get some extra shut-eye.

"Alright. You win. I'll go and take care of it."

Lelouch stood up, and took off his hat, revealing the full head of pitch black hair underneath. He put on another smile, and walked past C.C silently, with all intent to take care of the things he had been putting off for the majority of the day.

Meanwhile, as the green-haired C.C watched him walk off into the distance of the field, her smile disappeared, and she began to wonder just what kind of suffering this man intended to put himself through. She knew the man who he really was, even though he himself did not. Nevertheless, this is what Lelouch had wanted for himself. This had become his atonement for his sins.

"You are a bold man, Lelouch…" C.C said quietly, before his figure disappeared through the stalks of the vast wheat field.

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"Talking to you again really does bring back memories."

Milly Ashford laughed from hearing this. Of all people, she never expected Kallen Kozuki to be this sentimental. But then again, it wasn't hard for her to figure out what kind of person Kallen really was, especially after the multitude of events that had occurred in the past year.

"What? I'm serious!" Kallen protested, confused to why Milly would think something like that was funny. The two of them were currently sitting in a spacious café, not all that far from Ashford Academy. It was around the afternoon, and Kallen had managed to find the time after school to meet up with Milly, whom she hadn't seen for quite awhile.

"I'm just surprised, is all. I never thought you were that attached to the past. Anyway, how have you been? I want to hear everything!" Milly asked in a giddy voice as she sipped on her coffee.

"Everything's been…good. We all miss you at the Academy…well…there are a lot of people we miss…" Kallen replied, her voice getting a little lower as she looked down at the hot cup of coffee before her. She thought back on all the people who suffered their demise during this past war. There were many, but she could remember them all. However, one of them stuck out the most in her mind, and in her cup of coffee, she almost thought she saw the clear reflection of Lelouch Lamperouge.

"We all have to move forward, Kallen. It seems to me like the world really is changing for the better this time. You've seen what Britannia is like now under Empress Nunnally. Every day, more and more of Japan is being rebuilt. I don't think this country's ever had more help than Britannia is giving it now."

Kallen looked up at Milly, who offered the red-haired girl a sincere smile. Milly was very right. Although the war had been long and painful, and many lives had been lost, they all did have to eventually move on. Kallen had been able to do it most of the time for the last few months, but nevertheless, memories of Lelouch were the hardest to get out of her mind.

"You're…you're right." Kallen said, looking up and smiling back at Milly. She took a long drink from her cup of coffee, feeling a little better from it. Meanwhile, Milly was smiling devilishly, and she moved just a little too close over the table, catching Kallen off-guard.

"So tell me…who's your new love?"

"What? What are you talking about?" Kallen asked sheepishly, trying to hide the blush on her face.

"I'm not stupid, Kallen. You've got the lover's vibe coming off of you, and I want to know who the lucky guy is!"

Milly was smiling wide, and for Kallen, it seemed like there wasn't much she could say to escape Milly's question.

"It's nothing."

Kallen took another sip from her coffee, and Milly leaned back in her chair, obviously dissatisfied. She didn't believe Kallen one bit, but she had hoped that the girl would at least give her some sort of clue so she could figure it out herself.

"And in case you're wondering, Rivalz talks about you the most out of all of us. Gino got really annoyed about it the other day because he wouldn't stop…"

"He does?" Milly asked, with sudden curiosity and excitement in her voice. Kallen looked back at her with a sly expression, and Milly unexpectedly blushed, much to Kallen's delight.

"I mean…that's nice."

Kallen almost had the urge to laugh, but she held it in. By now, it was obvious that Milly had probably wanted some attention from Rivalz for awhile. Kallen initially wondered why she never actually tried to go after the guy, but when she thought about it, she assumed Milly just wanted to be the one who was pursued. Either way, it was still funny to watch Milly become flustered for even a moment.

"I think I need to run. I've got to be somewhere for work, so I'm sorry to leave on short notice." Milly said as she got up from her seat, the blush slowly fading from her cheeks.

"It was nice seeing you." Kallen said as she stood up as well. It wasn't so inconvenient that Milly was leaving, since Kallen was supposed to be home for dinner soon anyway.

"It was nice seeing you too, Kallen. Don't forget to tell me about your trials of love when we meet again!" Milly exclaimed as she headed for the exit to the café, winking at Kallen before she went through the door.

Kallen waved as she watched Milly leave, and before she knew it, her mind was on the same topic it had been on for the last few months. Milly had been very right when she mentioned something about Kallen having a new love. Unfortunately, that new love was currently deceased, and it wasn't really that new at all.

She sighed. Her thoughts had been very conflicted recently, mostly over Lelouch's actions leading up to the peace that had finally come over this world. It was a terrible price for him to pay, but he paid it nonetheless.

Sometimes, Kallen just wished Lelouch had found an easier way to end all this violence and war. A way where he could still be with them in the Academy…

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"This is unacceptable! Who in this damned world decided to have that crippled orphan become Empress?!?" a tall, bearded Britannian noble shouted among his colleagues, outrage written all over his face.

He was one of the many noble gathered in a private estate, which lay far within the untouched parts of the Britannian countryside. The owner of this estate had stepped out for a moment, but even still, he had taken the time to gather any of Britannia's former nobles, as long as any of them were interested in the possibility of re-gaining their status and power.

"Schneizel supports Zero, and because of that, I've lost most of my family's wealth!"

"He's a traitor to the Britannian Empire! That has been established. What needs to be done is for us to retake our Holy Empire that Zero destroyed!"

"And how do you suppose we do that? With the Empress now in power, we have lost all credibility. Look at us, meeting in secret and plotting to overthrow her and gain control over the world. We are no greater than that insect Zero!"

"I would certainly rather be in this position than still be under the control of that madman Lelouch. At least we don't have to worry about him any longer, thanks to that Orange bastard."

For the last few hours, these various former nobles of Britannia had been bickering over their current trouble concerning Zero and the new Empress Nunnally. When Empress Nunnally came into power, she pardoned many of the Britannian nobles who had expressed open hate and prejudice against those not of Britannian blood, but at the same time, she effectively exiled them from the Britannian Empire. These nobles lost most of their wealth, status and political power in the process. And so, they were nothing less than enraged as a whole over Empress Nunnally's decision.

"You people can't stop fighting amongst each other for even a few seconds, can you? You're like vultures fighting over a carcass. I personally find it pathetic." A voice stated from the other side of the large hall that the nobles were currently situated in. It was a male voice, and it sounded almost majestic, but devious at the same time.

The nobles turned, and they all looked to see a figure approaching. He was a tall male, with chestnut brown hair that was about shoulder-length. He wore a stark white uniform with various Britannian emblems designed on it, which contrasted against his tan skin and hazel-green eyes. He had what looked like a rapier sheathed on his left hip, along with a pistol on his right. His features were comparable to that of a classical sculpture. He was easily one to make an entrance, and the nobles around him had nothing to say for the first few seconds of his entrance.

"Speechless, are we? I'm sorry for not providing you with a more proper introduction. Alexi Stratton, at your service." The man said, oddly smiling as he bowed to the various nobles present. Many of them were wearing suspicious looks, and Alexi could even see some whispering to one another like children sharing a secret.

"I hope you have a good reason for gathering us all here." One of the nobles said, poison in his tone.

"That I do."

Alexi took a seat in the only chair available, and put a relaxed look on his face. He began to speak, his voice sounding confident.

"I've gathered you here because I'd like to propose something to you…disgraced people. I understand you all want your power back, along with the wealth and status you've enjoyed as one of the many nobles of the former Holy Empire. I seek a goal similar to yours, and after much thought, I have figured out the best way to achieve all our goals and take back our Holy Empire as well."

The nobles seemed to be listening intently now, perhaps more because the sound of the man's voice was almost inspiring in a strange way.

"We've seen what Zero is capable of. He formed his own personal army with the Order of the Black Knights, nearly destroying Britannia over a year ago. His plan was a bold one, and I must say it…inspired me quite a bit." Alexi stated, laughing a little at the end of his sentence.

"What are you getting at?"

Alexi narrowed his eyes, and spoke calmly as he unveiled his thoughts.

"I propose we learn from Zero's first triumph. I would like to form what I have called …The Order of the White Knights."

Many of the nobles gasped at Alexi's words, and almost immediately, he could feel the sense the auras of distrust around many of them.

"Are you mad?!? Not only do you expect us to imitate that fool, but you expect us to become terrorists as well?"

The voices of dissent were clear among these Britannian nobles, not much to Alexi's surprise. Nevertheless, he continued to speak.

"I expect you to do what is necessary to take back our beloved empire, but you seem to misunderstand me. The White Knights I intend to lead are no allies of this so-called "justice". No, they are something entirely different. They intend to take everything this world has to offer by force, from the cursed Area 11, to the entirety of the Britannian Empire itself. We will become not the allies of this world's people, but predators. That is the natural order, is it not? Survival of the fittest dictates the way this world works, and the Order of the White Knights will exemplify that."

For a few moments, the many nobles remained silent, unable to say much in response to Alexi's explanation. Many of them were wary of his plan. He was considering that they be reduced to the level of the despicable Elevens, and most of the nobles present had trouble coming to terms with such a concept. Nevertheless, the more they thought it over, the more the possibility of them being able to re-gain their losses appealed to them.

Finally, one of them spoke up, albeit with a nervous tone of voice.

"What…do you ask that we do?"

Alexi smiled, and as the nobles watched, one of his eyes began to radically change color. It turned from a hazel-green to a glowing maroon color, and where his pupil used to be, the symbol of Geass could be seen instead, flashing brightly.

"Oh, quite a bit, my friends…"


	2. Turn 02: White Horizon

**Well, due to the fact that people seem to actually like this story, I have decided to write up the next chapter! Kind of quick to be posting it the day after, I know, but I'm not gonna have too much writing time for the next few days, so I figured I would do it. Lots of hints of stuff in this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy!**

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Turn 02: White Horizon

The sky was as dark as tainted blood. In Lelouch's mind, that was the only thing he could really compare it to. He suddenly felt trapped in some sort of closed space, and all the colors that Lelouch could make out in the landscape where strangely morbid.

He was standing by himself, in the middle of an empty circle, surrounded by stalks of wheat. In front of him, a vast pond stretched back into the distance, and the water showed his reflection almost perfectly. The sky was dark above Lelouch, with clouds that were as black as volcanic ash.

"Why am I here…" Lelouch said quietly to himself, staring down into the pool of water before him. His reflection shined back at him, but the more Lelouch looked at it, the more he could notice that it was smiling back at him. The Lelouch in the water was smiling at him deviously, and after a few moments of the two staring at each other, one of the eyes of Lelouch's reflection began to glow brightly. It began to glow a maroon purple color, and then Lelouch saw nothing but a bright flash. He shielded his eyes for the second it lasted, and when it subsided, the once clear water was now the color of blood.

Lelouch backed away, confused. He could only wonder why he was in this place. It definitely wasn't a place he wanted to spend any more time in. Unfortunately, Lelouch could feel his limbs stiffen as he tried to back away any further, and before he knew it, he was paralyzed on the spot like a human statue.

_What?_

Lelouch's mind raced. He was stuck in thick air now, unable to escape. As his eyes moved around in panic, he could see something shifting in the bloody water before him.

"Lelouch…." A voice said from below the red depths. It was surprisingly sweet in its tone, but even still, Lelouch couldn't help but feel fear from hearing it. He didn't know why, but just sound of this voice was making his heart beat faster.

An image could be seen in the water. It was the reflection of a woman with flowing pink hair, and she was wearing an elegant dress. Lelouch could not recognize this person, but as with hearing her voice, his heart just beat faster at the sight of her. Beside her, another person materialized in the surface of the water. This time it was a girl dressed in an Ashford Academy uniform, and she had a sad expression on her face. Her hair was just as long as the first woman's, but it was a bright orange color. Lelouch's heart rate was speeding up, and by this point, he struggled against the force keeping him in place, wanting so desperately to escape it. Finally, he could see one last person materializing, and it was a young boy with brown hair, and he was wearing a black uniform. His expression was indifferent, though one of his eyes was faintly glowing with a maroon light.

"Lelouch…" they all said in an eerie unison, causing Lelouch to finally lose himself for a brief moment.

"What do you want from me?!?"

Lelouch didn't know what else to say. He didn't want to see the images of these people, or have to hear their voices in his head. He closed his eyes, hoping they would just go away.

Slowly, Lelouch could feel himself being pushed forward by an invisible force. He opened his eyes as he frantically struggled against it, but the force was strong, and before he knew it, he was at the edge of the blood-colored pond, with the three people in the water staring up at him.

"...welcome back, Lord Zero." The three said at once, before their eyes seemed to all simultaneously glow the maroon color that he had seen in his own reflection before. His eyes went wide with fear as he felt himself falling forward, and but a second passed before he hit the red water face-first.

Lelouch's eyes seemed to just snap open as he woke up with a start. He was sitting up in his bed, beads of sweat coming down from his forehead, and his breath coming out in short but quick bursts. He put a hand on his forehead, slowing his breathing and trying to calm himself down. Lelouch's heart was pounding in his chest like a constantly beating drum.

_They just keep coming back…_

Lelouch, for all the times he's tried to present himself to C.C. as being in a good mood, was in fact a bit troubled. For the last few months, he had been consistently having these recurring nightmares. They weren't every night, but they came often enough that Lelouch found it increasingly harder to get a good night's sleep for more than two days in a row. The nightmares involved people he didn't know, and they almost always ended with these people calling him…Zero.

He didn't know what they meant by the word "Zero". He knew very little about the outside world beyond what C.C had told him, and he definitely didn't know much about anything involving Zero besides it being a number.

_What does it all mean?_

Lelouch sighed to himself. He definitely needed a long rest from this madness.

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Tonight was surprisingly nice, especially when one could see the stars out. The Britannian skyline was beautiful under the right circumstances, and since most all of the conflict had ended, one did not need to worry about the sky being filled with aerial warships and Knightmares.

On a balcony of the newly constructed Britannian Palace, the man known as Zero stood silently and by himself, looking towards the black night sky, his mind wandering.

Of course, this man was not the same Zero who had first tried to bring down the Britannian Empire over a year ago. He was certainly not Lelouch vi Britannia, former Emperor of the Holy Empire of Britannia. No, this man was Suzaku Kururugi, the Emperor's former Knight of Zero. Under the orders of Lelouch, Suzaku had faked his own death, and taken the mantle of the masked Zero, before publicly slaying Lelouch in front of his own subjects. To the people of this world, this was seen as a heroic act of deliverance. It was an assassination of a tyrant. But to Suzaku, this was all part of the Zero Requiem.

In the darkness that lies underneath Zero's helmet, Suzaku wore a relatively indifferent expression. To the rest of the world, Suzaku Kururugi was dead, killed in action when his Lancelot exploded and he failed to activate the emergency survival cockpit. Lelouch thus gave him the task to become Zero, and to sacrifice his own happiness and identity for the sake of the world.

But was it really that simple of a task?

_You tell me, Lelouch._

Suzaku only wished that was possible. Lelouch had betrayed him, manipulated him, and lied to him more times than he could possibly remember. He was responsible for Princess Euphemia's death, as well as the death of countless innocents. Suzaku had even tried to kill him more than once. But even through all that, he was here now, a servant of Lelouch.

Suzaku still couldn't help but wonder if he was truly the one to bear this task. While Lelouch had done many terrible things, Suzaku had his own sins as well. However, he had no choice but to live on, unlike his former friend. It was Suzaku's curse.

Behind the masked Suzaku, the sound of electronic wheels could be heard, as a brown haired, delicate-looking girl in wheelchair came onto the balcony. She was none other than Empress Nunnally, and under her decree, this palace had been built. It served as a replacement for the first Britannian Palace, which had long been destroyed during the conflict preceding Lelouch's takeover.

"Are the stars nice tonight, Zero?" Nunnally asked the masked hero in a sweet voice. It's almost as if her voice could serenade anyone. Suzaku only wished it would do something to keep his mind away from the darkness.

"I suppose they are nicer than in most nights." Suzaku replied quietly, not turning to face Nunnally, was right behind him now, a hopeful look in her eyes.

"You don't have to sound so sad, Zero."

Suzaku turned, his expression still unchanging underneath his mask. Nunnally's words seemed to bounce around his mind, mostly because he felt that he should be taking the time and the energy to listen to them as best as he could. Unfortunately, he didn't know is such a thing was possible at this point. She didn't have any idea that he was the face underneath the mask now, nor did she understand his current feelings.

"There's a lot for us to look forward to. I've spoken with Kayuga-san, and I'm planning on making Britannia a permanent part of the new United Federation of Nations. I'm going to make the announcement public tomorrow, but enough people already know. We're so close to the peace…you helped create, Zero."

Suzaku was certainly not one to be oblivious to changes in a person's tone, and he could easily tell that Nunnally's voice became a little saddened at the last part of her sentence, despite the cheerful expression she was trying to convey on her face.

"Peace…" he said, his voice trailing off at the end.

"Yes. Peace."

Nunnally smiled, hoping she could get some sign of happiness from the normally silent Zero.

Suzaku turned around again, his cape swishing with him as he faced the stars in the sky again.

"Your brother is dead. Was this peace really worth it?"

Suzaku was eager to hear Nunnally's answer. Deep inside him, he almost wanted to feel the pain in her voice. He almost wanted to know that like him, she was also hurting deep inside. He wanted a reassurance that he wasn't the only one suffering like this.

"Onii-san…did what he had to do. Everyone remembers him differently, but I know what he really was. He cared about us…enough to make himself eliminate all the violence and hatred of this world all by himself." Nunnally said in as strong of a voice as she could muster, and for Suzaku, it was a bit of surprise. Nevertheless, he almost frowned when he heard Nunnally. He didn't expect that kind of response, nor did he really want it.

_Am I the only one who has trouble accepting Lelouch's death?_

"I see." He replied, his voice low.

Nunnally's expression faded for a moment, as she wondered why Zero seemed so distant from her. In the first few months of actually having him by her side, he had been reserved and quiet, usually never speaking unless it was necessary. Now, it seemed like he had an opinion, as well as his own view on Lelouch and his effect on the world.

Nevertheless, Nunnally put on a smile, having figured out a way she could possibly change the mood of the moment. She would much rather hear Zero at least being a little happier than this. Especially since the time had come for her to inform him of a few…important things.

"I almost forgot to tell you. Tomorrow, after the address…I'm going to be having...surgery."

Suzaku's mind stopped for a moment, and he looked back at Nunnally. Something seemed to momentarily warm his heart.

"They said I might be able to walk again. I'm really excited…but I need you to be there. You've helped us so much. I don't think I can do something like this alone."

Suzaku was facing Nunnally again; feeling a bit shocked even though he looked relatively calm externally. To him, this meant quite a bit. He wondered is Nunnally being able to walk would change much, but nevertheless, he began to feel just a little happier.

"So…will you be there…Suzaku?" Nunnally asked innocently, her sparkling eyes focused on Suzaku with deep trust. In the instant that she said his true name, Suzaku practically went blank. In a million years, he never expected Nunnally to actually deduce his true identity. As long as he lived as Zero, he truly never wanted her to know.

"How…."

Suzaku could say nothing more. He felt beaten.

Nunnally simply looked up at the masked man, her voice sincere.

"I wouldn't forget your voice, Suzaku, no matter how much you try to mask it. I've known you were Zero for awhile. Don't worry though….your secret is safe with me."

Suzaku looked down at his feet, suddenly feeling confused and a little embarrassed. He wondered just how easily his cover had been blown, and what kind of mistake he must have made for things to lead up to this. Either way, he would have to trust Nunnally, even though he knew he already did.

"So will you be with me tomorrow, Suzaku?" Nunnally said with happiness in her words.

Before he even knew it, Suzaku was smiling underneath the mask. He walked right up to Nunnally, and without second thought, he got on one knee, putting his head down as he took one of her hands in his gloved ones. He spoke with power and confidence in his voice.

"Yes. I will be there, Nunnally."

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_Why am I still doing this? I should have forgotten about him months ago! _

Kallen was nothing less than confused at the moment. Laying on her bed, and staring up at the ceiling, she couldn't think of really anything else but the same problem that had been affecting her for the last few months since Lelouch's death.

The problem was really just centered on Lelouch in general.

In all honesty, Kallen didn't really want to have her mind so focused on Lelouch. She didn't want to be debating with herself whether she should consider ceasing to be involved with the Black Knights, and perhaps just pursue a more normal and carefree life. Recently, Ohgi had personally called to inform her that Empress Nunnally planned on integrating Britannia into the United Federation of Nations, an action which would effectively be one of the final steps in creating a united world. Tomorrow, the Empress would announce it formally to all.

But what did she think of all this? With so many things having happened in such a short period of time, Kallen almost didn't know what to think. She could certainly continue with the way things were going. In fact, she could probably climb the ranks of this new Black Knight military force quite quickly, with her skills. But was that what she really wanted?

_Is it? _

Kallen sighed, hugging her pillow. She didn't want to stress over these kinds of things. She would rather just be able to not think about it. She would rather have Lelouch around. In her mind, if Lelouch was around, things would be better. It didn't matter what he did to achieve this peace. All that mattered was what he did to himself. That was the one thing Kallen couldn't forgive him for.

_Maybe I should be acting like a regular high school girl. I should be chasing after boys and gossiping about useless things all the time, instead of dwelling on a dead man… _

Kallen thought about it for a moment, before smiling wide, in an attempt to make herself feel just a little better.

_Well, Lelouch is on a whole different level compared to the rest of the males in this world. I think that's a little hard to compete with..._

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The sound of quiet footsteps emanated in the narrow hallway outside of Lelouch's room, and C.C. tried her best not to be any louder. She was dressed in a simple, light green nightgown, having been awoken in the night purely because she no longer felt tired. And so, the only thing she thought might be mildly interesting would be to see how Lelouch was doing, if he was even still asleep at all.

As she walked towards his room in the tiny cabin they called their home, she wondered if she should be bothering him at all. Although he had never told her, she knew that he'd been having trouble sleeping, mostly because of the many times she'd find his bed empty and unmade in the middle of the night. C.C. was restless like this often, so it only took a week or two of this to figure out that something was up with Lelouch.

Of course, she knew that his problems may very well be related to something far worse than loss of sleep. Despite knowledge over much of the Zero Requiem, even C.C. didn't know everything about it. What Lelouch did to himself beyond becoming amnesiac was one of those things.

Slowly opening his door, C.C. walked into Lelouch's room with the grace and delicacy of a housecat. She glanced towards his bed, and not much to her surprise, his blankets were disturbed, and his hat was missing from the nearby table. C.C.'s expression was indifferent, because she had a good feeling that Lelouch had gone out to think, as he usually did on these kind of late nights. So without much of a reason to stay, she left his room, wondering how long it would be until he decided to stop pondering out in the field and finally get some sleep.

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The morning dawn shone across the Japanese countryside, casting its orange light over the once dark landscape. Along one road, Lelouch walked by himself, his hat blocking the rays of the dawn from hurting his eyes. He wore simple garb suitable for one used to this countryside, and for the last few hours since awakening in the middle of the night, Lelouch had been walking along the same road.

In all honesty, he had begun to grow tired of these confusing dreams of his. He wanted answers, to know what all his dreams surrounding Zero meant. He assumed that he would find some sort of answer, if any; beyond the place he called home. But along with that, Lelouch couldn't help but have a strange curiosity for what lie beyond in the country that was Japan. While he had never truly seen it, he expected bustling cities, modernization all around, and of course, people. They were people he didn't know, and he had yet to meet. Somehow, he couldn't help but be a little excited.

Stopping for a moment, Lelouch spotted a large, blue, white-bordered sign a few feet ahead. It said in bold, large letters...

**TOKYO SETTLEMENT: 20 MILES.**

To Lelouch, how far this place was made relatively no difference. As he continued to walk past the sign, he could see what looked like a few buildings in the distance as the road began to converge between them, probably signifying some sort of small town. He looked back for a moment, wondering is C.C. was worried about him yet. No doubt she would be at this point.

Nevertheless, Lelouch put it off his mind, heading along the road for this new destination. Hopefully, it would lead him to the answers he was now dead set on finding.


End file.
